Editors' Top Reads: News from Isamaya, VIOLETTE_FR, M&S and more...
Here are some of this week’s news and features highlights handpicked by TheIndustry.beauty team.
TikTok Shop celebrates record-breaking Black Friday
TikTok achieved record-breaking sales this Black Friday, marking its biggest-ever UK sales event to date. I can't say I'm surprised by this news, but it's impressive nonetheless.
Growth was partly driven by a surge in LIVE shopping, with over 6,000 sessions per day in the UK during the Black Friday period (25th November - 2nd December) as shoppers flocked to find discounts on the latest trends in fashion, beauty, home, electronics, toys, and books.
It comes as TikTok predicts this Christmas will mark its biggest UK retail moment yet, continuing to benefit from LIVE shopping sessions and an increase in ad spend from clients. It certainly will be a Merry Christmas for the TikTok Shop team, as well as the brands involved.
Sophie Smith, News Editor & Senior Writer.
The worlds of beauty and sport collide in Isamaya's collection with Nike
Isamaya is known for breaking norms, first creating a phallic-shaped lipstick (yes, I did splurge on it because my dressing table was missing that all-important shock factor) and now she's fusing the worlds of beauty and sports by teaming up with sportswear giant Nike.
Though Charlotte Tilbury seems to get all of the clout (who we still love, of course), Isamaya Ffrench is also one to shout about. As one of the biggest British names in the beauty industry, she has worked as a Creative Director and consultant for a host of covetable brands including Byredo, Burberry and Tom Ford.
This time, Ffrench has cross-pollinated the beauty and fashion realms by teaming up with Nike to create two exclusive colourways of the Air Max Dn inspired by beauty's "massive presence in women's sport today". The Isamaya Ffrench x Nike Air Max Dn will be available globally in beige and chocolate brown at Nike.com and in select stores on 20 December.
Chloé Burney, Senior News & Features Writer.
VIOLETTE_FR secures Series B funding to fuel global expansion
VIOLETTE_FR has global expansion in its sights having secured backing from, among others, Silas Capital, this week in a series B funding round.
The multi-category brand established by New York-based and French born make-up artist Violette Serrat in 2021 has taken a differentiated approach to brand development in a crowded market. For a start, and unusually for an MUA-founded brand, it covers both skincare and make-up.
But what really sets is apart is Serrat's approach to formulations and precise pigments. She invests heavily in R&D, releasing products only when they are right, and also relies heavily on her instincts rather than sales data when it comes to launching new colours. This is why we see shades of vibrant blue and violet in her range, that other brands would normally avoid for fear of them not being commercial enough. But with Serrat's touch these colours are rendered desirable and core to any beauty lover's make-up bag.
Her Bisou Balm is top of my list of the next products I want to try, based purely on her mesmerising Instagram posts. This is a brand that seems destined for great things, as long as she retains the values she set out with (and which happily her investors appear to appreciate and support).
Lauretta Roberts, Co-founder, CEO and Editor-in-Chief.
'After three unnecessary years of delays' M&S’ Marble Arch redevelopment is approved
I don’t know why I care so much about this saga, but I do.
Having initially had its plans to raze and rebuild the 94-year-old flagship in Marble Arch, the plans were rejected by the then-secretary of state Michael Gove, who claimed that demolition would negatively impact nearby sites, including the Grade II*-listed Selfridges store directly opposite. I reported on it at the time, and I don’t say this lightly: it was a whole thing.
However, three and a half years after the first proposal was submitted in March 2021, the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government has approved the redevelopment as of 5 December.
Marks & Spencer CEO Stuart Machin said: “We can now get on with the job of helping to rejuvenate the UK’s premier shopping street through a flagship M&S store and office space, which will support 2,000 jobs and act as a global standard-bearer for sustainability."
Katie Ross, Content & Events Executive.
